2 posts from August 2013

August 27, 2013

Ashley Gorven works in the Hamilton Spectator's circulation department and passed on this photo of her grandmother Edna Monkhouse. She loved the paper so much, she once took it with her to a party - as a dress.

Ashley followed her grandfather and works in the distribution/circulation department making sure all the news and information makes its way to readers throughout the city and province. Years back, her grandfather, William (Bill) Monkhouse drove a delivery truck and was once awarded a recognition pin for driving a million miles accident free (yes, kids that's imperial measurement).

At one of the Spec parties, Edna fashioned a dress and umbrella out of the newspaper. Now that's partying like a journalist!

August 26, 2013

One of the most significant threats to democracy and public transparency
is the suppression of information and an electorate willing to allow
that to happen. Elected bodies, services and agencies at all government levels
collect information that is yours and mine and keep it buried, or worse,
secret. The information is out there: Budgets, forecasts, audits, internal and external
relations, planning, projections, expenses, it goes on and on. Transparency and
access to information is sadly limited.

We see this playing out on a large scale on the
international stage – Wikileaks, NSA, as examples. On the provincial stage in
Ontario:
think cancelled gas plants. How much did this decision cost? And closer to home
in Hamilton,
try getting detailed (audited) information about the revenue and expenses of taxpayer-funded
festivals, or individual municipally-funded departments (think police
services).

Since Feb. 2012 The Hamilton Spectator has been asking for
the expenses of executives with Hamilton Health Sciences and so far, despite
using provincial freedom of information legislation, not been able to do so.

Spec reporter Joanna Frketich detailed the frustrating search for answers in a story on Aug. 23 detailing costs and delays invovled with accessing expense information that should be public.

An editorial in today's paper details the disappointment with delays and nicely captures why this information is important to all of us. HHS is the example in this case. Sadly, there are too many instances of this happening. More citizens need to use FOI (ATI - Access to Information at the Canadian federal level) and we need more pressure on bureaucrats to loosen their grip on information that is owned by us all. Democracy does not work in the shadows or the dark. Sure there are details that are damning and when those come out it makes us accountable, transparent and stronger.